EBay has chosen Drync of Somerville to power eBay Wine, an entirely new marketplace.
This week, the e-commerce giant launched a Web page dedicated to selling all things wine.
From Cru Beaujolais to vintage Bordeux to space-age decanters, eBay is using Drync to help it source over 10,000 varieties of wine that can be delivered to 45 states. (Better luck next time New Hampshire, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Alaska).
The partnership means that eBay Inc. will add Drync’s nationwide network of wine retailers to its online marketplace. Though eBay already had some wine sellers on its platform, the site lacked a dedicated Web page for browsing wines alone.
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Wine retailers across the country will pay to list their products on Drync’s proprietary app, which is now integrated with eBay. This means that nearly all that’s available on Drync can be purchased on eBay, though the e-commerce veteran says it will vet the sellers to ensure they’re complying with all the rules.
Government regulations on shipping alcohol across state lines are murky and open to interpretation, said Brad Rosen, chief executive and founder of Drync, so the decision to ship is at the discretion of the seller.
Neither Drync nor eBay will assume any legal responsibility if a retailer fails to comply with the laws of its state.
“We’re really just a technology company that built a cool app that people love,” Rosen said. “The legal onus is completely on the licensee.”
Drync was founded in 2008 as an app for oenophiles to catalog their favorites and read reviews. By 2013, it had added a feature that let customers purchase wine directly through the app. Users could then choose to have retailers ship the wine to their homes or head to a retailer for pickup.
EBay now joins Amazon Inc. in providing its customers with a large selection of wines for delivery.
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In Boston, Drizly and Buttery have also made names for themselves by helping their customers to arrange alcohol deliveries through a smartphone app.
To date, Drync has raised $5.6 million from investors, including KEC Ventures and Great Oaks Venture Capital.
In an e-mail to the Globe, Alyssa Steele, a merchandising manager at eBay, said the online marketplace is looking to carve out a slice of the $35 billion US market for wine.
“The online market is experiencing double-digit growth,” she wrote.
“It’s a huge opportunity and eBay’s wine destination fills a gap in the industry by offering a fresh, modern way to find wine that you love, enabling shoppers to browse collectible, rare, and everyday wines based on varietal, region, price points, and more.”
Amanda Burke can be reached at amanda.burke@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @charlie_acb.